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Hello and welcome to twenty-eighth episode of Fanboy Nation’s Toon-In-Talk, your rendezvous for animation interviews. Every year Whitney heads to Atlanta, GA to mingle with other geeks and practice her puppetry skills at DragonCon. DragonCon is the biggest fan run convention in the United States and in 2016 there will be over 75000 attendees and over 3500 hours of programming. Even though he is working 24/7 until the convention ends, Dan Carroll, DragonCon’s head honcho, had an hour to chat with Whitney about the new happenings for 2016, including animation and puppetry guests.

DragonCon is a totally volunteer run convention located in Atlanta, GA.

Whitney and Dan both love the diversity of programming available to attendees. The program topics range from the classic sci-fi shows like Star Wars and Star Trek to science, puppetry, podcasting, animation, anime/manga, and, this year, boy bands!

DragonCon is also a huge music festival within a convention featuring singers and musicians from all genres.

One of the new things for 2016 are the Dragon Awards! The Dragon Awards honor individuals in literary, TV, film, and other mediums who have made extraordinary contributions to science fiction and fantasy anniversary.

The Dragon Awards also celebrate DragonCon’s 30th. anniversary.

DragonCon is four days log with over 3500 hours of programming. These hours include performances, lectures, presentations, and dances. DragonCon is alive 24/7 during Labor Day weekend!

Whitney and Dan both encourage DragonCon attendees to take care of themselves by showering, eat two meals, and get at least five hours of sleep. Also don’t forget to wear deodorant in the Georgia heat to avoid the con-funk.

The best way to ensure attendees have the best DragonCon experience is to download and use the DragonCon app to make a schedule, view programming, and rate programs.

Brian Henson and several other famous puppeteers are going to be there, much to Whitney’s excitement. The cast of iZombie, William Shatner, Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon cast members, Mystery Science Theater folks, and Adult Swim guests will be in attendance.

Whitney is a huge Labyrinth fan and this year is its 30th anniversary as well. The Center for Puppetry Arts is holding a masquerade ball with original props and puppets from the 1986 film. Unfortunately, that has sold out. However, there will be more Labyrinth based programming at DragonCon.

DragonCon does host two sports: professional wrestling and robot battles. In Whitney’s defense, some people do attempt to play Quidditch sans broom.

DragonCon could officially become a five-day event in the future.

One day Whitney hopes to be a guest at DragonCon with her book on Lotte Reiniger.

The DragonCon Masquerade Parade is the most popular event and this year it will be broadcast on network television.

DragonCon limits the amount of time reporters spend with guests, so they too, can enjoy the convention.

The shopping has expanded as has the art show, comic creators area, and gaming.

Dragon expects to have 75,000 attendees this year, when in past years they only had 28,000.

DragonCon has a huge programming track for animation fans. There is Kaleidoscope, a tween-based animation track, and then the animation track itself that covers a variety of topics related to the medium.

Dan Carroll has fun at DragonCon by practicing his stand-up comedy at Project Cosplay.

DragonCon has a staunch anti-harassment policy for all attendees so they fell safe and can have fun.